Dragon Age Presents: Beauty and the Beast
by Artzielady94
Summary: Random challenge from DA:writers group! Female Tabris as Belle, Swift Runner as the Beast, and Vaughn as Gaston. Once upon a time...


It was a rain drenched, foggy afternoon in the Brecillian Forest and Belle Tabris was hopelessly lost. She had been separated from her party after passing through the strangest fog she had ever seen. This forest was a death trap and an endless maze teeming with moments of "Where in the void am I?" and "What the void is that?"

She cursed aloud when she passed the same maker-forsaken tree for what seemed like the fifth time. With a growl she slashed at the tree in exasperated fury. She was an elf for Maker's sake! Shouldn't she have at least _some_ sort of internally ingrained sense of bloody direction!? The clang of metal on wood was the only sound to be heard, echoing ever more loudly in the all-encompassing silence around her… until a new sound chimed in.

A chill ran down her spine with the deep, bellowing growl that suddenly ricocheted off the trees. As she turned to peer into the dusky forest she was met with a pair of glowing, yellow eyes. Those of which were joined by another. And another. And yet another.

One… two… three… ten... fifteen... Crap!

Before she could even get in a decent defensive stance they descended upon her. An entire pack of blight wolves. Just what she needed today…

She remembered saying how she wanted adventure in the great wide somewhere. Well, she should have specified that she didn't want it to involve blight wolves... or the blight in general. But hey, she had been in worse scrapes than this and survived, right? Right, ok.

Her pep-talk was soon interrupted by the first wolf to charge her. With a sidestep and a quick stab into the massive beast's back, she dropped the animal to the ground with a thud.

"Fourteen," she whispered, pleased with herself and feeling the tiniest bit better about her odds until a cacophony of howls and growls ignited the small space she seemed to be trapped in.

"Uh oh…" was all that could slip through her open mouth before they attacked her again. She spun and dodged as best she could, barley missing the first set of snapping jaws and gnarled teeth. Her attention was too focused on the wolf in front of her, though, and she didn't see the second attack coming in on her left. With a cry that was a mix of pain and utter rage, Belle twisted as best she could and punched the animal in its snarling face.

Staggering to her feet, she staunched the blood flow of her shoulder with her hand and tried her best to retreat. The wolves seemed to smirk as they encroached further, black ichor dripping from their gnarled teeth.

_This can't be it. This can't be how I die… _

No, she wouldn't die like this! She would die fighting to her last breath! She had too much to fight for! Too much and too many to live for! With a fresh wave of adrenalin and optimism, she gripped her small dagger in her hand, waiting for what was to come next.

The loud thumping of her heart and the low, rumbling growls of the pack were the only sounds until a sudden roar made her heart stop in her chest. Before she even knew what was going on, a blur of fur and claws passed her by, tearing through the pack like a maelstrom, pulling them down and destroying them in one fowl swoop. The wolves howled a battle cry as they fought their new and more dangerous target.

Belle looked closely at the whirling force of destruction and realized that she knew who it was.

"Swiftrunner," she whispered as she watched him demolish the pack like a group of children's toys. It enthralled her so much that she did not notice the lone wolf sneaking up behind her, determined to have one last bite. She screamed as she felt sharp fangs gnaw into her delicate back and rough paws press her face down into the dirty forest floor. She struggled and squirmed, trying to fight back but to no avail. The beast on her back was too massive, it's weight effectively holding her down. Panic started to worm its way into her guts as breathing got difficult. Pine needles and earth and woodchips filled her mouth and nostrils, tangled in her hair and got into her eyes. She was trapped and blinded and slowly suffocating.  
A desperate squeal wrenched itself from her throat, her fingers clawing helplessly at the forest floor… and then suddenly, the weight on her back was gone. Growls and whines and the snapping of teeth reached her ears as she struggled into a kneeling position. Dazed, she watched as her attacker was thrown into a tree with brutal force. A last pained wail, the cracking of a backbone and the forest fell silent once more as if the fight never took place.

Belle looked up at the beast in front of her with increasingly heavy eyelids. Swiftrunner bent down nearly snout to nose with her and gruffed:

"You are under my protection."

He then nudged her face with his wet and bloody muzzle, almost as if he were checking if she was still alive. Belle reached her hand up and weakly stroked his furry cheek.

"Thank you..." she breathed before her eyes fluttered close.

Belle didn't know how she came to be in the ruins of what looked like an ancient temple but that was where she was. Her hands felt around her as she tried to rise from where her body had been laid to rest. She painstakingly observed her surroundings and found herself in awe of the beauty that she beheld. Enchanted stones lined the walls of what seemed to be an interior court yard, making the white stone shimmer with an ethereal glow. A huge fire had been lit and was roaring in the center of the room making shadows dance across a very familiar lump of fur huddled close to the fire.

A little smirk curled her lips as she moved to make her way over to her rescuer… only for it to turn into a grimace when a sharp pain shot through her shoulder and back. Looking down, she realized that her wounds had been cleaned and wrapped in some kind of greenish-brown, almost gauze-like leaves she did not recognize.

She took a few deep breaths until the pain had subsided before she made another, much more careful attempt to rise and walk over to the comforting blaze of the camp fire. Sitting down in front of it, Belle watched the peaceful rise and fall of the werewolf's chest as he slept and was surprised at how much less imposing he looked huddled up in a tight ball, snout on its great paws and softly snoring. He looked more like a lost puppy now than the dangerous predator that saved her in the forest. It was almost… sweet.

With her uninjured hand she cautiously reached behind his ears and began to scratch them gently. Swiftrunner keened out a pleased little whimper in his sleep, nuzzling into her hand, silently begging for more. With a giggle she complied, scratching his pelt in long, relaxing strokes until her fingers brushed against a bruise or a scratch that caused him pain.

With a howl the beast roared to life immediately, pinning her to the ground with his teeth bared at her neck.

"Wa-wait! Swiftrunner! It's me… it's Belle… I'm sorry!" she cried out, protectively holding her hands up in front of her face

The werewolf blinked a few times, focusing on the tiny being in front of him. She could feel his hot breath on her neck, only one controlled chomp away from ripping her open. The beast narrowed his gaze and with a sniff and a snort he rose off of her.

"It is not wise to wake me in such a way," He huffed, chiding her.

Belle nodded sheepishly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to... I..." she started but then thought better of it. "Would you let me take a look at your wound? It looks pretty rough. I can… tend it for you if you like," she offered sweetly, reaching her hand out to him.

He shot her a scrupulous look, obviously pondering if letting her tend his injuries was or was not a good idea, then scooted towards her. He seemed all the more like a battered puppy to her, worried of the pain she might inflict because that's all anyone has ever done.

A gentle and reassuring smile crossed her lips as she dipped a clean cloth into a basin of water.

"This might sting a little," she warned him before slowly, carefully touching the cloth to the scratch on his massive arm. Swiftrunner bit out a threatening growl as the water sunk deep into his wound, causing her to jump a little but after a while he relaxed into her. He even seemed to like it. His ears hung low, twitching occasionally, eyes half closed. She almost expected his tongue to loll out at any given moment. The thought was amusing and she had to bite back a small chuckle, concentrating on her task again instead. After a few minutes of quiet work, Belle's voice cut through the silence.

"Swiftrunner, why did you... do this for me?" she asked curiously.

He puffed out a breath of air before voicing his gravely reply. "You promised me your aid in breaking this curse... you are my only hope."

His voice was so sad and it tugged at her heart.

"Well, I will try my best not to let you down. There has been much suffering on both sides. All this needs to end."

He nodded his agreement while scratching his wooly leg with his long claws. He was so human-like and yet so animalistic. It must be hard to be stuck in between the two like this. Belle could empathize with him because she almost felt the same way. An Elf stuck in a human world, not belonging with the Dalish and not belonging with the humans. She felt as if every person she met always thought _Look, there she goes, that girl who's strange, no question. _

With a sigh she finished up his wound and tapped his arm.

"All done. You should sleep now. I think we both need some rest before you lead me back to my friends."

With a scrutinizing eye he looked over her work, sniffing and snorting his inspection. When he was pleased with the result, he looked at her and gruffed:

"You are... good at that. It has been... a while since anyone has treated me so... gently."

She gave him a soft smile and a shy nod, blushing a little.

"Uhm… thanks?" she said, suddenly very self-conscious. Her eyes only left his for a moment but when she looked back he was even closer to her. His heavy breath tickled her skin and made a shiver run down her spin.

"You are not like the other elves... you are... strange," he rumbled, coming even closer to inspect her, obviously having no concept of personal space. She rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.

"Well, isn't that the teapot calling the teacup white? You're a werewolf for Maker's sake."

She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned, obviously offended.

The beast's lips stretched over his teeth into a sort of smile.

"I did not say that i didn't like strange," he rasped as he leaned in closer, running his cool, wet snout down her neck, sniffing at it curiously. He made a guttural almost purring noise that had her entire body shiver with something she did not dare put a name to.

Belle tried to speak but nothing came out of her suddenly dry mouth and with a tilt of his head Swiftrunner slowly retreated back to being nearly nose to nose with her. When those fathomlessly deep, blue eyes locked on hers, she felt her heart begin to beat a little faster... her body became incredibly tense... and her mouth began to inexplicably water. She shook her head with a gulp and turned her eyes from his before they swallowed her whole.

'I… uh… should… sleep," she stuttered, scooting back from him a little. "Good night, Swiftrunner," she said, quickly moving back to her bed-role on the opposite side of the room. The werewolf cocked his head to the side in confusion as she slid beneath the animal skins and tried her best to fall asleep.


End file.
